Friday, May 23, 2008

CBC’S Hockey Night in Canada kicks off the 2008 Stanley Cup Final on Saturday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. ET as host Ron MacLean sets the stage for Game One ... MacLean sits down with Penguins star captain Sidney Crosby – who is making his Stanley Cup Final debut, while Elliotte Friedman speaks with Red Wing veteran defenseman Chris Chelios, the NHL’s all-time leader in post-season games played. Scott Oake, Kelly Hrudey and Craig Simpson will also be on-hand, priming fans for Game One with insight and analysis, live from Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

At 8 p.m. ET, HNIC drops the puck on the 2008 Stanley Cup Final ... Bob Cole and Greg Millen hit the broadcast booth to call the showdown, while Oake and Friedman report from ice level.

>> press release

I generally find the criticisms of Bob Cole to be a tad harsh, but in a situation like this, there's no question I'd rather have Jim Hughson in the play-by-play role.

Or Chris Cuthbert, for that matter.

As for the Crosby sit down, it'd be nice if we hear something new from The Kid. Is there anything left to learn about him at this point?

15 Comments:

James. You missed another ex-Hockey Night Alumnus that is sorely missed..Ken Daniels who does the Red Wings games on Fox Sportsnet. He's fabulous. I doubt Hockey Night could afford to hire him back from the Wings though.

Disappointing. I think Cole has improved since Millen replaced Harry Neale as the lead analyst, but Jim Hughson is hands-down the best play-by-play guy in the business. Cole is merely above-average. I know the CBC has a long history with Cole, but you've got to cut the chord and move-on at some point.

What people take for granted about Bob Cole is his ability to make a moment feel special. He sells the drama better than almost anyone in the sport. Does he get some little things wrong from time to time? Sure, but he knows how to use his tone of voice to really accentuate the biggest games and the biggest moments.

I think Hughson is fantastic no question, but he doesn't have the same flare for the dramatic as Cole. Not yet anyway. That's why the man is a hall of famer.

I'm no Cole-hater either -- he's got a real classic vibe, with that warm voice and authentic flair -- but in the games I've heard from him this year, his age has really shown. He's a step behind the play and often doesn't bother with names at all any more. If it was radio, you wouldn't have the foggiest clue what was going on until somebody scored. And Millen has always been irritating, hasn't he? Simpson blows him out of the water as a colour guy.

I've been so impressed with Hughson/Simpson. Leaving them out of the final sort of looks like another nod to CBC's home base in Toronto, where Cole is an institution from calling all those Leafs games.

I'd take Cole over Hughson too. He has the knowledge and the flair. The criticisms are way off base. He's still THE play-by-play guy and good for CBC for going with him! Too bad there is very little of interest in the finals. Detroit is going to have an easy time of it.

Cole and Millen are so great that's why Hockey Night In Toronto had to go into full damage control during Montreal's series. Bob breaks out in hives at the prospect of not doing his Maple Leafs and the end product shows.Maybe the senile old fart will learn all the players names before the end of this series but don't hold your breath.OH BABY! What a save by the goalie...Here's Andrei Kostopolous of the Canadiens.Retire you old loser and hey Toronto centric media he's over the hill past his prime and should be shunted off to wayne and shuster land.

I've been impatient with Cole getting the details wrong for 20 years now, and obviously he's not getting better at them.

However, what I have come to appreciate is the dynamic quality to his call. When he's calm and quiet you can get up and fix yourself a snack, but when his voice gets louder, higher, faster it's time to sit up and pay attention. Hughson is accurate and prepared, but he only has one level.

And to be fair, guys, it really isn't Cole's fault that HNIC has become so Leaf-centric the past 10 years.

That's disappointing. Cole is arguably the worst play-by-play commentator to ever call a game (yes, maybe even worse than Rick Jeanneret). Maybe he was decent a couple hundred years ago, but today he is downright terrible. He never knows the names of the players, he'll just randomly agree with Millen, even if he's completely wrong (which he is sometimes), and he blabbers on about the tiniest, unimportant detail and then goes silent, so by the time he is back to calling the game, it's been about 30 seconds since you last heard what was going on. Thank God he doesn't do radio.....

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About Me

A sportswriter at The Globe and Mail, James covers the NHL and the game of hockey. He is a member of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association, a radio and TV analyst with TSN and was the NHL network manager at SB Nation from 2008 to 2010. A graduate of Thompson Rivers and Ryerson universities, James grew up in Kamloops, B.C. — one of Canada's great hockey cities — and was a season ticket holder in the Blazers' glory years.

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